It seems to slow down now. donnaK is proven right with her suggestion that we will see "more King, less Prince" now after JCs aides thought that F&L stole the limelight a bit too much during the old man's illness.

While Felipe does have acts next week and had some this week, it is obvious that both King and Queen are the dominant figures out there with lots of acts.

Letizia only has 2 audiences with Felipe on 27th = spare time from 18th onwards what is very unusual and will certainly lead to speculations in the media.

The agendas of the King and the Prince are similar (King 5-Prince 4 this week, King 3- Prince 5 next week). The Queen has more acts than usual, but Zubin Mehta and Placido Domingo are two of her passions (two concerts with the same orchestra and same conductor and a birthday gala and an opera), so more pleasure than obligation. The case of the Princess is less nomal... we can only wait news.

The Prince and the Princess will deliver on February 11 the prize Carlos V to Javier Solana. A prize that normally the King delivers and that has been granted to international important politicians. So it does not seem that they have so much interest to return them to the second line.

The agenda of this couple is immense. Almost every day I see pictures of them involved in some engagements. From all the crown prince couples they seem to look like the most hard working with the exception of the Swedish crown princess couple. From time to time I think you can see the tired eyes of the Princess Letzia but she goes on, for which I admire her a lot. I think that one day this couple will make a great regent couple and they will do a good job for their country.

Yes they do work really hard...there was a poll about the hardest working royals and the Spanish royal family won hands down. The Queen and Letizia did the most work in the family

Although JC looks healthier than the 2nd half of last year, he still hasn't been back to his former full speed yet. Even if a certain group courtiers want 'more King, less Prince', but how long they will be able to keep the Prince on the shelf is another story, all depends on JC's health and he isn't young anymore.

Although JC looks healthier than the 2nd half of last year, he still hasn't been back to his former full speed yet. Even if a certain group courtiers want 'more King, less Prince', but how long they will be able to keep the Prince on the shelf is another story, all depends on JC's health and he isn't young anymore.

He might look healthier but he is not young anymore, I guess when a persona reaches a certain age they just tend to want to slow down and enjoy life & I wont blame the King. He has just recovered well enough if not fully but taking things slow wont hurt.

He might look healthier but he is not young anymore, I guess when a persona reaches a certain age they just tend to want to slow down and enjoy life & I wont blame the King. He has just recovered well enough if not fully but taking things slow wont hurt.

I disagree, JC is one of the characters who wont slow down and will only drop dead from the throne. Like Margrethe or QEII, JC has made clear that he will never abdicate and that his son has to wait until this very moment. Even if he is forced to slow down due to age, he will try to "keep the Prince on the shelf" (citing donnaK ) and make sure who's boss whenever possible. Charles has been struggling with the same attitude for years and the struggle is likely to continue. I dont think JC will reach the same stone age as his british counterpart but the coming years wont get any easier for Felipe due to the clash of finally wanting to create or raise his own profile and the increasing senile stubbornness of his parents. No son in his fourties or even fifities still wants to be told what to do by Mommy & Daddy or, in Felipe's case (unlike Charles), depend financially on his parents. And while Felipe's personality does clash with his father's personality he is still caught in the middle as a 110% Mommy's boy who wants to please Sofia who would never turn against the King because it would mean to turn against the monarchy. She has already made clear various times that she wont be promoting her son as King before the old man has gone.

Spanish publisher Santillana, a leader in Latin America and Spain in the educational field, marked its 50th anniversary Tuesday with an event in Madrid at which Spain’s Crown Prince Felipe spoke of the company’s “commitment to education and culture.”

dazzling, people don't have issues of JC taking it slow because of the health reason or age, it was the power behind the King who had issues of the Prince 'hogging' too much spotlight. They didn't like seeing Felipe making an excellent speech (the best ever IMO) in front of 800 guests in Madrid promoting the PoG foundation.

Duke, I pretty much agreed with you, but I don't think Felipe is Mommy's boy anymore when it comes down to his own role. He has become more matured, more confident, more assertive, knows what he wants these days, it's not so easy to keep him on the shelf, we will see what happen in the future.

There can be certain sectors interested in creating this controversy of the protagonism of the Prince for other interests, even some near to the King that for their own interest they do not want that the things change. Even it would be normal, that for the King is difficult to assimilate that he has an age, and that has to change many habits of life, in professional and in the personal thing.

But the general opinion, for the people, the press and in the own House of the King, is that the Prince is going to be assuming more functions and responsibilities, and it is something normal. That has been going on for 25 years and each time the duties are more important. The King acts of Chief of State, does office work ... but now the street belongs to the Prince, and it has an aim and is that the people know him and know his work. The King of Spain is a person that played a role in the history, a person with great influences in many sectors ... because of it the process is so delicate.

But Duke, the King can belong to a generation, have a way of thinking ... but I do not think that compared him with the Queen of Great Britain or Denmark is right, because his life story is totally different. If there is a King who knows that the country and the monarchy must be over the person it is he, moreover, without that idea, his and his family life, work and sacrifice would be meaningless. Today we seem to forget that during more than the half of his life, the King was nobody (this way the Queen defined her first years in Spain " when we were nobody "), and the way has been long and complicated.

Prince and Princess of Asturias will be present in the concert that next February 4 Luz Casal will offer in the Madrid Arena, organized by the singer to collect funds to investigate the cancer. Luz has suffered this disease in two occasions. This concert coincides with her return after six months away from the stage for a relapse.

What exactly happens at an audience? The Spanish royal family seems to do a lot of them. Do people just get a meet and greet or is there some sort of business meeting, too?

They are meetings, the members of the Royal Family receive to the different sectors of the society: politicians, businessmen, foundations, associations... generally dedicated to topics with which every member of the Royal Family works. A normal audience is a meeting of a half hour where they speak about the activity that they realize, their projects, the people that takes part.

Lula, I don't agree that JC knew the monarchy should be over the person more than QEII and QM, the two truely professional queens just as Sofia. JC is quite temperamental, he does as he wants, sometimes his behavior was hurting others and he didn't seem to care.

Donna, not always it is necessary to mix the institutional thing and the personal thing, and less as they were educated. It is not possible to see only the man who at the age of 73 has the education and the thought of another epoch and who is little grouch. It is necessary to think about the child that at the age of 10 is separated from his family to live almost in loneliness and in the shade of a dictator , whom during more than 20 years the father and the dictator handle as a piece of chess ... and that finally has to pass over his father (with the trauma that supposes it) for the good of the country and of the Monarchy... and he had to pass many things to be where he is today.

I do not believe that Juan Carlos and Sofia have the same thoughts about the Monarchy, that other kings or queens of their generation, they can share many things, but their own vital experience has led them to living also through the most bitter face.